A homeless tour guide for your London visit: Why not?

Think there’s nothing you can learn from a homeless person? Think again!

Now you can book a tour around some of London’s coolest areas with a homeless tour guide. Pioneered by Unseen Tours – a social enterprise aiming to tackle homelessness in London, this concept has proven to be a huge success with hundreds of positive reviews on TripAdvisor.

So how is a homeless tour actually like?

I booked a homeless Brick Lane tour during my stay in London in December 2016 out of curiosity. My tour guide was Pete – a previous advertiser who lost his job, became homeless and has had to sleep rough around Brick Lane for over 10 years. Along with his easy-going nature, Pete also wowed me with his extensive knowledge about the cultural and social issues around Brick Lane as well as in England. During the tour, Pete told us mind-blowing stories about the famous criminal Jack the Ripper, the suffrage movement in the early 1900s and the multicultural development of Brick Lane following Jewish and Muslim people’s immigration.

I was also blown away by Brick Lane’s brilliant street arts. Having worked in the advertising industry before, Pete explained to us a great deal about how street artists here cleverly delivered subtle messages of social struggles through their creative artwork.